FRUITS OF NEEDLEWORK.
"Now this is what I should call neat--neat, and not gaudy," said Dame
Desley, as she stood in the doorway of Nelly's home, and surveyed with a
pleased eye the perfect order of the place. "The fire-irons bright,
though small--the paper chosen with judgment--everything needful, though
there is little to spare--each article in its proper place, and neat and
good of its kind." Oh, how delightful to Nelly was the praise which she
had fairly earned by self-denying labour!
"Considering that Nelly is lame--that she has never been gifted either
with quickness or strength, I have every reason," observed Mr. Learning,
"to be satisfied with what she has done."
"And what a beautiful bird; and how tame!" cried Dame Desley, as
Content, recognizing a friend, hopped lightly down to her finger.
"That was the gift of my dear friend, Duty," said Nelly.
"A friend whom you cannot prize too much, or follow too closely,"
observed her mother.
"Here she comes herself!" cried Nelly in joyful surprise, "and sweet
Affection behind her! They have doubtless come here to-day to welcome
home my dear mother."
The meeting was a very joyous one. Duty and Affection had for many years
been the valued friends of Dame Desley.
After the first words of greeting had passed between them, Affection
inquired whether the dame had seen the gardens of her daughters, and
looked at their needlework plants.
"Not yet, but I am going to examine them," replied the mother.
"Let us all come together!" said Duty.
With a very low bow of respect, Mr. Learning offered his arm to the
noble maiden; Affection rested one hand on Dame Desley's, and, smiling,
held out the other to Nelly; Lubin and Matty followed behind--the boy
somewhat sulky and sad, but the girl with reviving spirits. Matty was a
little jealous of the praises which her sister had received; but she
expected in the garden, if not in the cottage, to be found far superior
to poor, lame Nelly.
The gardens of Nelly and Matty were divided from each other only by a
box-hedge, which was scarcely three inches high. The party, though
entering from Nelly's back-door, went immediately into the garden of her
sister, as Dame Desley thought that it was right to attend first to that
of the elder.
Both gardens won a fair meed of praise. Matty, as has before been
mentioned, happened to be fond of geographical flowers; and while the
arrangement of the two gardens was equally neat and correct, Matty had
certainly a larger number of countries and capitals to display.
"I should not wonder," whispered Matty to Lubin, "if I were to win the
silver crown of Success after all."
Lubin's only answer was a sigh; for he knew that he had lost all chance
of getting the prize.
"And now for the needlework plants," said Dame Desley, approaching the
garden-wall.
Every one uttered an exclamation of pleasure on beholding Matty's
beautiful creeper. Ripe fruits, with rosy down like that upon the peach,
hung on its twining boughs, looking lovelier by contrast with its green
and shining leaves. Matty plucked one, and offered it to her mother. The
dame quickly removed the rind, and a delicate little bead-purse met her
admiring gaze. It was of pink and gold, with tiny tassels to match.
Matty pulled another fruit from the bough, and it offered to view a
pretty bead-mat, with a pattern of flowers upon it.
"Well, that is a fine plant!" observed Mr. Learning, admiration in his
spectacled eyes.
Matty triumphantly squeezed Lubin's arm. "I think that I shall get the
prize," she whispered. "I should have been sure of it if that stupid
chair had not given me such an unfortunate tumble. How ugly Nelly's
plant looks yonder, with its large, coarse, prickly stem; and it grows
so close to the ground. I should be ashamed to have such a thing in my
garden!"
"Now for Nelly's needlework," said Affection.
The whole party moved on to the spot, when they saw a plant--not
beautiful, it must be owned, but with three fruits, as big as pumpkins,
resting upon the ground, half covered with large green leaves.
"Shall I pluck one?" said Nelly, modestly.
"Let us see it," replied Mr. Learning.
Nelly stooped, and broke from its stalk the smallest of the fruits. It
was so ripe that the rind burst open in her hands, and out dropped a cap
as white as snow, with a number of delicate frills all neatly hemmed and
gathered. With a smile and a blush, Nelly presented her little offering
to her mother, while a murmur of approbation sounded from all around.
"Ah, how useful this will be!" exclaimed Dame Desley; "this fruit is
charming indeed!"
"Let us see the others," said Duty, bending forward to gaze.
Again Nelly stooped and raised the ripe fruit; again it burst open in
her grasp. She pulled out an apron, very prettily made, with neat little
pockets in front!
"The very thing that I have been wanting!" cried the dame, putting it on
with pleasure and pride.
"There's more yet to be seen," said Mr. Learning.
The third fruit was so very big, that but for the assistance of both
Duty and Affection, Nelly would hardly have known how to manage. It was
not quite so ripe as the others, and would not come readily from the
thick stalk, and the rind did not burst open as those of the two first
had done.
"How can we see what is in it?" cried Matty.
"Something very good is in it, no doubt," said Affection; and Duty,
pulling a pair of scissors out of her pocket, soon decided the question.
A great hole was made in the rind, and all the party pressed round with
curiosity to watch the little girl, who now began slowly to draw out
the gray contents of the fruit.
"I say," exclaimed Lubin, "what's that long thing?--it looks for all the
world like a sleeve."
"The body is coming after," cried Matty.
Yes, sure enough it was coming, body and skirt and all--a nice, new,
warm dress, for Dame Desley to wear through the approaching winter.
When the whole of the huge fruit was emptied, and the gown held up by
Affection, there was a general clapping of hands, in admiration of the
wonderful plant. Matty alone looked coldly upon it, and observed in a
low tone to Lubin, that such a dress as that would certainly never be
worn by Lady Fashion.
"Nor made by her most particular friend," laughed Lubin, who had half
forgotten his own troubles in Nelly's triumph. "Depend upon it that a
sensible dress like that was never stitched by Miss Folly."
"We may congratulate Nelly," said Duty, "upon the success of her
Plain-work. I wish that every girl in the land had such a plant in her
garden."
"I think that none of us can doubt," observed Mr. Learning, taking the
white box from under his arm, "which of our four young friends has made
the best use of Time-money--which has best deserved the crown of
Success." And opening the box, he took out a most elegant wreath of
leaves worked in filigree silver, and made an attempt to place it on the
head of the blushing Nelly. But the little girl modestly shrank back.
"Oh, no!" cried Nelly; "it is not for me. It would not be right, it
would not be fair, that poor Dick should lose what he had fairly earned,
because Folly set his furniture on fire. Lubin can witness, Matty can
witness, that his cottage was far better furnished than mine before the
accident happened. Indeed the crown ought to be his. I could not bear to
deprive him of it."
Duty smiled kindly at the little pleader; Affection stooped down and
gave her a kiss.
"I must say," observed honest Lubin, in answer to Nelly's appeal, "that
none of us cut such a dash as Dick did before that unlucky explosion."
"Nelly," said Mr. Learning, with a most benevolent air, "the crown is
yours--I give it to you. You may bear it to your brother, if you will."
The lame girl waited for no further permission, but hurried off at the
greatest speed which she could command, to carry to another the prize
which she herself might have worn.
"After all, I believe that Nelly _has_ deserved all the praise and love
which she has won," sighed the disappointed Matty, her jealousy
conquered by the example of generous self-denial which she saw in her
younger sister.
The party quickly followed the steps of Nelly Desley to the cottage of
Dick--Lubin assisting his mother to carry the various gifts of his
sisters. Affection quitted the rest for a few minutes in order to direct
the movements of some attendants, who were spreading a table in the open
air, in the space between the cottages. They were making preparations
for a banquet, designed as a pleasant surprise for the Desleys upon
their mother's return. The treat was given by Duty and Affection upon
the joyful occasion, and especially intended to honour the wearer of the
crown of Success.